We came across the band SPiN, initially, through their contribution to the 2012 WXPN 12 Days of Christmas compilation, "Christmas Time Again (I'll Be Good Next Year)", a rousing Power Pop anthem if ever there was one.

Turns out Philly's SPiN also released a digital Christmas EP towards the end of November. "Christmas Time Again" features the title original, 3 holiday standards rocked up and an instrumental version of one of them, "Silent Night".

SPiN makes classic Power Pop rock in the tradition of such great bands as the Raspberries and Cheap Trick and, for we fans of catchy pop music that rocks with great guitar work throughout, SPiN is definitely worth checking out.

The band's approach to "Silent Night" is very much as you might expect Cheap Trick to cover the song--nothing "silent" about it. "The First Noel" starts off AC and sweet, but shifts into a show-stopping head-bopping Pop/Rock tune with terrific harmonies and an awesome guitar solo that's not to be missed. "Little Drummer Boy" has enough energy to keep you up all Christmas Eve and even more outstanding guitar work.

And, were that the end of the story, we could all be thankful that SPiN has added a such a rocking Power Pop Christmas set to a market far too glutted, these days, with endless albums of pretentious faux rock. "Christmas Time Again" is highly enjoyable Power Pop for the holidays, as far as that goes, and certainly (without ANY doubt) mixtape worthy. But that's not the end of the story.

On the band's official web site is a little yellow box offering up three tracks from the band's 2011 full length "Believe". And those three songs are absolutely revelatory. Wow! SPiN absolutely blows the roof off the sucker and you're instantly transported to a virtual convertible '68 Mustang, speeding down the interstate with the top down and the volume up as high as it'll go. Maybe there's even a beautiful blonde bikini babe by your side. Why not? It's your fantasy, after all. This band ROCKS! The title track, alone, is a perfect blending of the best elements of Power Pop. It's a meeting of The Raspberries, The Cars, Queen, The Ramones, Rick Springfield, and (especially, imo) The Knack, distilled down to only the best and then fuel injected with enough high energy Pop Punk to fuel the entire country for a year and a half. The guitar work is incredible. And, as if that wasn't enough, the full "Believe" album is currently a name-your-price Bandcamp download. That one includes a great cover of the Zombies' "Time Of The Season". Talk about yer Christmas presents. Then there's the band's most recent EP, "The Scream Inside", which rocks even harder, if that's possible, but still captivates with pop melodies and irresistible hooks. And it's clear from this one (again, imo) that the band is progressing and growing even stronger. The songwriting is a bit more intricate and yet even tighter.

SPiN makes me want to move to Philly, that's how good they are. The Christmas EP is merely a small window on a house that really rocks. Keep your ear out for these guys; they are something special.

Every year, the folks at Zunior, Canada's "Little Digital Music Store", pick a Christmas album theme and then ask the finest Indie artists in the Great White North to contribute something that the theme inspires them to create. For this year's theme, Zunior decided to find inspiration from the 1965 classic "Ventures Christmas Album". Does that mean that this year's "A Zunior Ventures Christmas" is nothing but a bunch of regurgitated surf rock? Au contraire, mon frere. And you'd likely know that, if you'd checked out past editions of Zunior's annual Christmas set.

The artists, here, may have found their initial muse from the Ventures tracks they were assigned, but they've taken the music in numerous and varied directions. True enough, Sister opens the album with a fairly faithful Indie surf rock cover of "Sleigh Ride", following the Ventures arrangement fairly closely while giving the track a bit more edge. But, thereafter, the artists bring the old Ventures tunes into the 21st Century. You'll certainly hear echoes of the original versions, but these new takes are altogether fresh and unique. Dale Morningstar gives a folk rock meets punk meets Wild Man Fischer reading to "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town"--with vocals (of a sort); hard to find the Ventures anywhere in that one. Egger merges "Rudloph" with Cream, instead of the Beatles, emerging with a garage blues rock that's certainly a lot more raw than what the Ventures did. "Blue Christmas" gets a bass and reverb heavy Little Steven's Garage type makeover. The Super Friendz make "Scrooge" entirely their own, adding far more character and depth to their Indie/Horror rock instrumental version. And Ben Gunning turns "White Christmas" into a noisy, chaotic, completely post-apocalyptic meeting of polka band, 8-bit, psych rock and, God, I don't even know what that is. But it's delightfully different, whatever the hell it is. Even when the groups stick to a surf rock framework, the tunes are stripped down and rough and...thoroughly Indie.

We, at Stubbys, like different. And Zunior's Christmas collections are the essence of different. They're also relatively inexpensive (this one's $8.88) and all the money raised (100%) is donated The Daily Bread Foodbank. So check the song samples, buy the digital album, and check out the previous Zunior Christmas collections. They're all awesome, every one, and you won't find them anywhere but Zunior. Available in MP3 and lossless FLAC.

There's probably not much point in posting this one, as the only place you'll find it now is on the secondary market (eBay and the like).

"Death Might Be Your Santa Claus" was a Record Store Dayexclusive on Black Friday this year. Issued by Sony Legacy, the album collects up 16 (18 on the CD version) classic Blues sides from the early days of Columbia and Okeh records. The CD version was limited to 5000 copies, while the vinyl version was limited to just 3000. Since I love Blues and always try to support it and since no track list had been publicly released at the time, I dutifully went down to my local participating record store to pick up a copy. They informed me that they'd been shut out on that particular Record Store Day item and I had to scrounge them up on the secondary market.

The press (post Record Store Day) about the collection promised some music that didn't get included--notably Walter Davis' "Santa Claus Blues" and a second Lightnin' Hopkins track--and lavished praise on the label for making all of these rare Blues sides available again for the first time. Or something like that. And that might be true for the novice music listener. We obsessive Christmas music collectors, however, surely had just about all of these recordings already...from the recent Document "Blues Blues Christmas" CDs, if not independently. That's not a bad thing. It's just a fact. For those who still don't have this music in their collections, there are certainly some classics to be enjoyed. Butterbeans & Susie's "Papa Ain't No Santa Claus" is a mixdisc classic of the highest order and everybody ought to own a copy of Bessie Smith's "At The Christmas Ball" (which Columbia initially balked at releasing, thinking it not reverent enough).

There was, however, one track that caught my attention as I don't believe I have "Don't Think I Am Santa Claus" by Lil McLintock anywhere in my collection. I know the song through more recent (albeit fairly obscure) cover versions, but, unless it's under a different name or lost in the uncatalogued portion of my collection (which is quite a substantial chunk), it didn't ring a bell. So that was sufficient for me to justify the purchase. And, anyway...I gotz to support da Blues, whenever and wherever I can. I will say that there is far too much Rev. Gates on the collection for my taste. Just sayin'. The Rev.'s tracks are recordings of sermons from back in the day. An historical artifact of interest, to be sure, but a little of the Rev. goes a long way. But any Blues Christmas collection is a good thing, and there's no such thing as too much of a good thing.

If you're looking to add this one to your collection, it seems that the CD version is, at this moment, pretty well available and at reasonable prices (cheaper, in fact, than the Record Store Day price), though I'm pretty sure they'll dry up sooner or later. The vinyl version is already a bit tough to snag and that one will be a bit more pricey.

UPDATE: I meant to add that there is still lots of old time Blues music that hasn't been rediscovered and rereleased in the digital/CD era. Some of it recorded and bever even released on vinyl or shellac. I would love for some label to find and issue some of that, like Willie "Boodle It" Right's "Christmas Blues". Document has done a fine job of finding and preserving a good deal of the old Blues, but there is still much more work to be done.

"Chaise Lounge performs a blend of music that sounds like it was recorded at Capitol Recording Studios in 1962 and somehow found its way to today’s pop charts." So begins the sextet's bio at their web site. And, normally, you'd have to take such things with a huge salt lick. But, in the case of Chaise Lounge, the bio speaks the truth. The Washington D.C. group, at least on this Christmas offering, has captured the spirit and sound of 50s Lounge Pop artists perfectly. Names like Doris Day, Dorothy Collins, and Rosemary Clooney are bound to come to mind listening to this set, many of which were popular songs of that era. "The Man With The Bag", "Cool Yule", "Mister Santa". This is a perfect album for someone looking to flesh out their traditional Lounge albums with something fresh yet familiar. Did we say fresh? The true highlights of this album are the all new original songs--"December 25", "The Heart Of December" and "Snow Day"--that sound even more classic than the classics. As a special treat, we get a rare cover of Jimmy Charles' fun hit "Christmasville USA". And, if you want to go in for the full nostalgia trip, "A Very Chaise Lounge Christmas" is even available on vinyl, direct from the band. This is very much one to enjoy for many Christmases to come.

Part of Columbia's "Cocktail Hour" series, "Toast To The Holidays" was originally released in 2002 with 28 tracks spread over 2 CDs. The 2012 model has been shortened to 20 tracks. But, for a budget priced, quick grab, holiday soundtrack for your own head, you could certainly do worse. The new version of "Toast To The Holidays" was released July 31 and is currently only available from on-line retailers (so "not available in stores"), but it's easy enough to find.

It's almost certainly a sign that I'm getting too old for this...stuff, but I find myself very much digging the nostalgia groups this year. Came across this record from The PopTarts on CD Baby and was intrigued enough to sample a few tracks. If you just can't get enough of Sixties girl groups, and I'm in that number, I think you'll enjoy "A Toasty Christmas".

The PopTarts are a nostalgia group based in Cleveland, Ohio. It would appear from their packed schedule that the group does very well in and around the host city for the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. Their song list numbers over 100, featuring mostly the classic girl group tunes of the Marvelettes, The Chiffons, The Shangri-Las, The Crystals, Leslie Gore, The Ronettes, Dusty Springfield and more from that era.

For "A Toasty Christmas", though, these ladies got a bit more daring and creative. With the exception of "Oh Dear Santa" (the latest holiday spin on "Mr. Sandman"), the album features nothing but original tunes, though a few borrow the occasional riff or theme. It's a tasty string of holiday lights with plenty shining bright. Not every song hits a Home Run, but there are plenty of solid doubles and triples, here. And, when they do score big, they completely knock it out of the park. I'm already in love with "Christmas Angel" and "December Love". "Favorite Time Of The Year" takes me fondly back to the halcyon days when girl groups ruled the charts. And if you can't get behind "The Spy With The Golden Sleigh", then I think you might be missing the proper holiday twinkle.

At the moment, the hard copy CD is only available direct from The PopTarts, but you're certainly welcome to tiptoe through the download version at CD Baby. It's a fun, festive, and groovy sleighride back through a Sixties Wonderland of sparkle and mistletoe. To quote Austin Powers, "Yeah, Baby!"

It's been too long since we heard from Rita Coolidge. She hasn't released an album since 2005's"And So Is Love". Before that, you'd have to go back to 1998's"Thinkin' About You". Back in the 70s and 80s, she was pretty much the soft rock/country pop queen...an oasis in the desert of disco. Her biggest hits were "We're All Alone" and a cover of the Jackie Wilson classic "(Your Love Has Lifted Me) Higher And Higher". Every kid I went to college with had a copy of "Anytime...Anywhere". If you're too young to know Rita Coolidge, I would describe her in shorthand this way (and I hope I don't offend anybody with this, though I probably will offend everyone): she was Shery Crow when Sheryl Crow was still in grade school.

Rita was such a big star in the 70s that I know there must have been some song of her's we would play on the radio at Christmastime but, for the life of me, I can't think what it must've been. In 1980, Rita sang a few songs ("Lost Angels" and "Lake Freeze") in"The Christmas Raccoons"TV special, but I don't recall ever playing either of those on the radio.

Rita's 67, now, and still hot as hell. She's continued to perform and, apparently, does an annual Christmas show which she describes as very eclectic. The coming album features 12 tracks in all. I count 2 originals among them. AndRita promisesthe Christmas record will include a blend of all the musical styles of her career--pop, country, soul, jazz, blues and Native American. "A Rita Coolidge Christmas" will be released on October 30.

Release date of this soundtrack CD was recently pushed back from October 16 to October 30, so mark your calendars accordingly.

Carol Burnett is widely known for her own hit variety show that aired from 1967 to 1978. A few of you might also remember Carol in an early episode of The Twilight Zone. But Carol got her big television break on The Gary Moore Show which ran from 1959 to 1962. She was one of the key players in their regular cast, just as Harvey Korman would become a key player in her cast years later. Carol even won an Emmy Award for her work on Moore's show. Of course, back in those days, reruns weren't much of a thing. Generally, the programs were recorded on video tape and then recorded over to save money. So these Christmas episodes of The Gary Moore Show haven't aired since their original airing. The folks at Legend Entertainment collected up three of the Gary Moore Christmas shows, remastered and restored them, and will release them on DVD November 6. But Legend went one better, releasing this soundtrack CD of the Christmas episodes. Here, you'll find rare audio from Julie Andrews, Gwen Verdon, Mahalia Jackson, and the wonderful second banana Durwood Kirby singing Christmas carols and songs and a few tunes you've likely never heard before (unless you were watching the show 50 some odd years ago). The recordings above labeled "cast" most likely feature Carol Burnett prominently.

There's no stopping evolution...not even the evolution of "James Taylor At Christmas". You may recall that Sweet Baby James' Christmas album started life as an 11 track Hallmark exclusive. Purchasers got an extra gift that year when Taylor offered up a download only bonus track, Joni Mitchell's"River". Two years later, Columbia gave the disc it's wide release, now with 12 tracks; "River" was officially added to the disc, as was "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas", while "Deck The Halls" was dropped. For this 2012 re-release, Taylor has added "Here Comes The Sun", which originally appeared on Yo-Yo Ma's 2008 holiday effort, "Songs Of Joy and Peace", and the newly recorded "Mon Beau Sapin", a French adaptation of "O Christmas Tree". It's doubtful that the 14 track edition is the final evolution of "James Taylor At Christmas"--not while "Deck The Halls" is still exclusive to the original Hallmark version.

The 60's Invasion hails from Massachusetts and they're a "performance band"--which is to say their shows are a little more theme and theatrical than your standard concert. As the band name would indicate, they specialize in covering the music from the sixties. I don't see anything attheir web siteto suggest the band also performs original material and, for that matter, I don't see anything that suggests they've ever recorded and released anything before. So it was a bit of an anomaly last year when The 60's Invasion released a Christmas single (digital only, so far as I can tell). In addition to a fairly straight cover of "Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree", they wrote Christmas lyrics to the music of "Green Tambourine" by the Lemon Pipers--a late 60s gem that comfortably found the sweet spot where bubblegum and psychedelia co-exist.

It must have tickled somebody because, this year, The 60's Invasion has an entire album of the stuff,"Incense And Chia Pets". On total execution, I can't really give them any better than a B-minus; they just sound like a cover band and, what with Bob Rivers and half the DJs in America pumping out professional sounding song parodies 24/7, you really have to bring your "A" game's "A" game anymore. But, for song selection, these guys merit a.....is there anything higher than an A++? OK, so "Get Off My Roof" to the tune of "Get Off My Cloud" has been done before. And maybe the title track done to the sounds of "Incense And Peppermints" sounds better in theory than in practice. But the band gets 70 bonus points each for "Come On People (Have A Merry Christmas)" to the tune of "Get Together" and "Mom Won' Let Me"to the tune of the Outsiders' "Time Won't Let Me". The clear winner of a double bonus progressive jackpot has got to be "Sleigh Full Of Toys" to the Yardbirds' classic "Heart Full Of Soul". And "I Love To Go To Grandma's" (to"Dirty Water") is a hoot and a half.

I tend not to be a big parody guy. My theory is that goofy gets old in a hurry. But that doesn't mean I don't use 'em. Think of Christmas song parodies like nutmeg--you don't want to use too much, but you do want to use just a pinch. So, when your mixtape is calling for a dash of nutmeg this year, here's a handy place to find it. "Incense And Chia Pets" is available atCD Babyand directfrom the band.